Columbus City Attorney says Franklinton apartments are crime-ridden, hazardous
The Columbus City Attorney's office has filed a public nuisance complaint for unsanitary living conditions, other maintenance issues and crime problems against the owners of the Southpark Apartments near the old Cooper Stadium site in south Franklinton.
According to the complaint recently filed in Franklin County Environmental Court, inspections in 2021 at the 18-building, 365-unit complex at 841 Greenfield Dr. found about 200 violations, including roach and rodent infestations; missing smoke detectors; water leaks; inoperable water heaters, stoves, refrigerators and furnaces; damaged ceilings, walls and floors, rotted balconies and damaged railings.
There also have been more than 800 police calls to the complex between Aug. 1, 2021, and July 22, 2022. They include 179 disturbances, 51 domestic violence incidents, 49 stolen or recovered vehicles, 39 reports of someone with a gun, 22 shots fired, 19 wanted people, 13 burglary-related runs, seven accidental overdoses, six stabbings or knife complaints, five robberies and two sexual assaults.
City Attorney Zach Klein said the complex has become a magnet for crime and is in serious need of repairs.
"Families are living in unhealthy conditions," he said.
On April 7, 2022, Columbus building inspectors found that a common stairwell had deteriorated so badly that four units were vacated and remain empty.
City officials have talked to the owners about fixing the problems, but their work has been inconsistent, Klein said.
As of June 1, only 13 of the units that were reinspected were deemed compliant, while 80 still had active city code violations.
The owner of the apartment complex, Southpark Preservation Limited Partnership of Torrance, California, bought the complex in 2018 for $15.4 million.
A staff member at the apartment complex office referred questions to Torrance-based Preservation Partners, the management company. No one answered and the voice mailbox was full when The Dispatch called.
Carey Miller, an Atlanta-based lawyer who represents the owners, said he had not seen the complaint on Tuesday and couldn't comment.
City lawyers are asking the court to order Southpark Apartments management to present a plan to bring the property into compliance and take steps to thwart the criminal activity. The complaint also said Columbus police are concerned that the complex's security camera system isn't working properly.
@MarkFerenchik
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: City Attorney says Southpark Apartments unsanitary, crime-ridden